<html>
<head>
<meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1">
</head>
<body text="#000000" bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
<div class="story-body"> <span class="story-date"> <span
class="date">[Only question is how will this patriot(/enemy
combatant?) be Swartzed? over time they will get you... as he
says... but on this list, this guy would be anti-American...
and let us be clear, equality before the law depends on
whether the establishment likes you or not... Corzine of MF
Global took billions of dollars of client funds from his hedge
fund illegally and nothing... millions of fraudulent
foreclosures on ordinary Americans sold finance they could not
afford (affecting racial minorities much much more by the
way)... welcome to the age of cumuppence... well done to EFF
and others that have a critical rights based ideology with
common humanity in focus... ]<br>
<br>
10 June 2013</span>
<span class="time-text">Last updated at </span><span
class="time">07:19 GMT</span> </span>
<div id="page-bookmark-links-head" class="share-help"><br>
</div>
<h1 class="story-header">Edward Snowden was NSA Prism leak source
- Guardian</h1>
<div class="has-icon-comment dna-comment-count-simple"><a
href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-22836378#dna-comments"><span
class="dna-comment-count-number"></span> <span
class="gvl3-icon gvl3-icon-comment"></span></a> </div>
<div class="videoInStoryB">
<div style="position: relative; cursor: pointer; height: 252px;"
id="emp-22836419-99750" class="emp"><img
src="cid:part2.08000104.06050906@gmail.com" width="448"
height="252"></div>
<p class="caption">Ed Snowden explains why he became a
whistleblower (Video courtesy of The Guardian, Glenn Greenwald
and Laura Poitras)</p>
</div>
<p class="introduction" id="story_continues_1">A former CIA
technical worker has been identified by the UK's Guardian
newspaper as the source of leaks about US surveillance
programmes.</p>
<p>Edward Snowden, 29, <a
href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jun/09/edward-snowden-nsa-whistleblower-surveillance">is
described by the paper</a> as an ex-CIA technical assistant,
currently employed by defence contractor Booz Allen Hamilton. </p>
<p>The Guardian said his identity was being revealed at his own
request.</p>
<p>The recent revelations are that US agencies gathered millions
of phone records and monitored internet data.</p>
<p>A spokesman for the Office of the Director of National
Intelligence said the matter had now been referred to the
Department of Justice as a criminal matter.</p>
<p>The Guardian quotes Mr Snowden as saying he flew to Hong Kong
on 20 May, where he holed himself up in a hotel.</p>
<div class="story-feature narrow">“<span>Start Quote</span>
<blockquote>
<p class="first-child">I don't want to live in a society that
does these sort of things”</p>
</blockquote>
<ul class="links-list">
<li> <a
href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-22837100"
class="quote-link">Profile: Edward Snowden</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
<p id="story_continues_2">He told the paper that the extent of US
surveillance was "horrifying", adding: "We can plant bugs in
machines. Once you go on the network, I can identify your
machine. You will never be safe whatever protections you put in
place."</p>
<p>He added: "I don't want to live in a society that does these
sort of things… I do not want to live in a world where
everything I do and say is recorded."</p>
<p>Mr Snowden said he did not believe he had committed a crime:
"We have seen enough criminality on the part of government. It
is hypocritical to make this allegation against me."</p>
<p>Asked what he thought would happen to him, he replied: "Nothing
good."</p>
<p>Mr Snowden said he accepted he could end up in jail. "If they
want to get you, over time they will," he said.</p>
<p>He said he also feared the US authorities would "act
aggressively against anyone who has known me. That keeps me up
at night".</p>
<p>Mr Snowden said he had gone to Hong Kong because of its "strong
tradition of free speech".</p>
<p>Hong Kong signed an extradition treaty with the US shortly
before the territory returned to Chinese sovereignty in 1997.</p>
<p>However, Beijing can block any extradition if it believes it
affects national defence or foreign policy issues.</p>
<div class="story-feature wide "> <br>
<h2>US media response</h2>
<p>A <a
href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2013/06/09/nsa-whistle-blower-edward-snowden-editorials-debates/2406409/">USA
Today </a>editorial accepts that "the primary result of
Snowden's actions is a plus. He has forced a public debate on
the sweepingly invasive programs that should have taken place
before they were created". But, it goes on, "pure motives and
laudable effects don't alter the fact that he broke the law".</p>
<p>An editorial in the <a
href="http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/editorials/ct-edit-nsa-20130609,0,784197.story">Chicago
Tribune </a>argues that "some new restrictions" in the US
intelligence gathering programme may be in order, adding: "If
the government is looking for, say, calls between the United
States and terrorists in Pakistan or Yemen, why can't it
simply demand records of calls to certain foreign countries.
Is there no way to narrow the search to leave most Americans
out of it?"</p>
<p>Robert O'Harrow in the <a
href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/the-outsourcing-of-us-intelligence-raises-risks-among-the-benefits/2013/06/09/eba2d314-d14c-11e2-9f1a-1a7cdee20287_story.html">Washington
Post</a> writes that the growing reliance on contractors in
US intelligence gathering "reflects a massive shift toward
outsourcing over the past 15 years, in part because of
cutbacks in the government agencies". He argues that this "has
dramatically increased the risk of waste and contracting
abuses... but given the threat of terrorism and the national
security mandates from Congress, the intelligence community
had little choice".</p>
</div>
<p id="story_continues_3">Mr Snowden has expressed an interest in
seeking asylum in Iceland.</p>
<p>However, Hong Kong's South China Morning Post quoted Iceland's
ambassador to China as saying that "according to Icelandic law a
person can only submit such an application once he/she is in
Iceland".</p>
<span class="cross-head">'Core values'</span>
<p><a
href="http://www.boozallen.com/media-center/press-releases/48399320/statement-reports-leaked-information-060913">In
a statement</a>, Booz Allen Hamilton confirmed Mr Snowden had
been an employee for less than three months.</p>
<p>"If accurate, this action represents a grave violation of the
code of conduct and core values of our firm," the statement
said. </p>
<p>The first of the leaks came out on Wednesday night, when the
Guardian reported a US secret court had ordered phone company
Verizon to hand over to the National Security Agency (NSA)
millions of records on telephone call "metadata".</p>
<p>The metadata include the numbers of both phones on a call, its
duration, time, date and location (for mobiles, determined by
which mobile signal towers relayed the call or text). </p>
<p>That report was followed by revelations in both the Washington
Post and Guardian that the NSA tapped directly into the servers
of nine internet firms including Facebook, Google, Microsoft and
Yahoo to track online communication in a programme known as
Prism.</p>
<p>All the internet companies deny giving the US government access
to their servers.</p>
<p>Prism is said to give the NSA and FBI (Federal Bureau of
Investigation) access to emails, web chats and other
communications directly from the servers of major US internet
companies.</p>
<p>The data are used to track foreign nationals suspected of
terrorism or spying. The NSA is also collecting the telephone
records of American customers, but not recording the content of
their calls. </p>
<span class="cross-head">'Gut-wrenching'</span>
<p>On Saturday, US director of national intelligence James Clapper
called the leaks "literally gut-wrenching".</p>
<p>"I hope we're able to track down whoever's doing this, because
it is extremely damaging to, and it affects the safety and
security of this country," he told NBC News on Saturday. </p>
<div class="story-feature wide "> <a class="hidden"
href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-22836378#story_continues_4">Continue
reading the main story</a>
<h2>How surveillance came to light</h2>
<ul>
<li> 5 June: The Guardian reports that the National Security
Agency (NSA) is collecting the telephone records of millions
of US customers of Verizon under a top secret court order</li>
<li> 6 June: The Guardian and The Washington Post report that
the NSA and the FBI are tapping into US Internet companies
to track online communication in a programme known as Prism</li>
<li> 7 June: The Guardian reports President Obama has asked
intelligence agencies to draw up a list of potential
overseas targets for US cyber-attacks </li>
<li> 7 June: President Obama defends the programmes, saying
they are closely overseen by Congress and the courts</li>
<li> 8 June: US director of national intelligence James
Clapper calls the leaks "literally gut-wrenching"</li>
<li> 9 June: The Guardian names former CIA technical worker
Edward Snowden as the source of the leaks</li>
</ul>
<ul class="links-list">
<li><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-22811580">How
much do the spooks know?</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-22804547">Why
every call matters</a></li>
<li><a
href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-22808004">What
can you learn from phone records?</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
<p id="story_continues_4">Prism was reportedly established in 2007
in order to provide in-depth surveillance on live communications
and stored information on foreigners overseas.</p>
<p>The NSA has filed a criminal report with the US Justice
Department over the leaks.</p>
<p>The content of phone conversations - what people say to each
other when they are on the phone - is protected by the Fourth
Amendment to the US Constitution, which forbids unreasonable
searches.</p>
<p>However, information shared with a third party, such as phone
companies, is not out of bounds. </p>
<p>That means that data about phone calls - such as their timing
and duration - can be scooped up by government officials.</p>
<p>Mr Clapper's office issued a statement on Saturday, saying all
the information gathered under Prism was obtained with the
approval of the secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act
Court (Fisa). </p>
<p>Prism was authorised under changes to US surveillance laws
passed under President George W Bush and renewed last year under
Barack Obama.</p>
<p>On Friday, Mr Obama defended the surveillance programmes as a
"modest encroachment" on privacy, necessary to protect the US
from terrorist attacks. </p>
<p>"Nobody is listening to your telephone calls. That's not what
this program is about," he said, emphasising that the programmes
were authorised by Congress. </p>
</div>
</body>
</html>